In Foreign Direct Investment (fDi) Magazine’s first-ever “American Cities of the Future” rankings, the publication named Costa Rica’s capital San José as the fifth best city of the future in Latin America. The British bi-monthly magazine covers foreign direct investment.
The “American Cities of the Future” rankings use data and expert advice “to rank cities which have the best prospects for inward investment, economic development and business expansion,” according to a press release by the magazine.
Santiago, Chile took the top spot in the Latin America rankings. The South American destination was followed by Lima, Peru, Monterrey, Mexico, Bogotá, Colombia and San José.
The Costa Rican cities of Alajuela, Heredia and Santa Ana were listed as the top three most cost-effective micro-cities in 2011. Micro-cities are areas with a population of fewer than 10,000.
Mexican cities featured as four of the top 10 cities in the rankings. Colombia also had multiple entries in the list with Bogotá and Barranquilla. The northern Colombia port city of Barranquilla ranked eighth.
Guadalarjara, Querétaro and Hermosillo, all in Mexico, ranked sixth, seventh and ninth respectively. São Paulo, Brazil ranked 10th on the Latin America List.
In the overall “American Cities of the Future” rankings, New York City topped the list, followed by Chicago and Houston.
fDi Magazine looked at 405 cities throughout North and South America to compile the rankings. Cities were graded on factors such as economic potential, infrastructure, marketing strategy and quality of life.
